Bill Payne, along with other members of American Legion Lamouree-Hackett Post No. 72, attend a veterans celebration at Mount Marion Elementary School. (Freeman photo by Tania Barricklo)

When Bill Payne looks at all the artifacts on display at the Saugerties American Legion Museum on John Street, a singular word comes to mind: Sacrifice.

"Some people say we're glorifying war with our museum," he said. "We're not. All wars are horrendous, and it's not just for nothing. When our young men and women go, they know they may not come back, and they sacrifice for a reason," said Payne, the co-curator of the two-room museum that holds items like weapons, flags, uniforms and draft records, mostly donated by Saugerties' families.

"This country needs to survive, and what this exhibit shows is there are people...who were terrified and stood up to the fear and did what they needed to do," he said.

"People don't go to war because they're bullies. They go because that's what they need to do to keep this country from going under."

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As the area gets set to mark Veterans' Day locally, Payne not only reflected on the importance of the museum as a testament to the sacrifices men and women made for their country, but how attitudes have changed since he served in Vietnam in the 1st Marine Air Wing in 1969.

His role was to provide data-processing support for aviation operations against the North Vietnamese Army.

Payne's wing participated in four major campaigns between June of 1969 and July of 1971.

During his tour in Danang, Vietnam, Payne had also served as rifleman in the Contingency/Reaction Platoon as "Embarkation NCO," or non-commissioned officer.

In that role, he was a corporal in charge of planning for the shipment of his unit's equipment out of Vietnam by air and sea to Iwakuni, Japan, the Marine's air base.

While in the aviation unit, Payne said rockets and mortars were shot into his compound, wounding and killing some of the men.

He was lucky enough to survive and returned to the United States in the summer of 1971, but he recalled how he--like other Vietnam veterans--was not regarded as a hero by his fellow Americans.

"There's nothing to be gained by being bitter about anything," Payne said of those days.

"I'm a firm believer that if you go through some difficulty, you're going to come out the other side more appreciative and stronger. Bitterness is a dead end. If you get wrapped in the 'poor-me' attitude, it's not good."

Still, Payne, who held a bachelor's degree from Long Island University and was working as a probation officer in Dutchess County, said he experienced firsthand some of the prejudices that existed toward those returning from Vietnam.

On one occasion, he wanted to donate blood at the Poughkeepsie armory.

"One of the questions they asked was if you had been out of the country. I told them I was overseas in Vietnam. The nurse then went on to ask me if I used intravenous drugs," Payne said.

"Even though I told her no, the lady went on to do a detailed inspection of my arms. My status as a Vietnam veteran trumped over my status as a probation officer," he said.

"It was the prevailing attitude at the time. You might be carrying a badge (in the law-enforcement field), but if you were in Vietnam, you must be a heroin addict."

Even years after the United States withdrew its troops from Vietnam in 1973, those who served were regarded with hostility and even criticism, Payne noted.

"There was such an uproar about the war itself that people blamed us. It was just one of those things," he said.

During the Vietnam War, more than 58,000 military personnel were killed and close to 304,000 were wounded in action.

Many of them felt the hostility, but people like Payne fought through that and came to realize how politics played a key role in the attitudes of the time.

"In my opinion, I think that although the Vietnam War was not prosecuted as it should have been, the cause of keeping the Vietnamese communists from taking over was not an unjust cause," he said, calling Communism a "great evil."

"Nobody wants to live under Communism, and I don't regret at all that I put myself in the line of fire to stop that from happening," Payne said.

"America is not perfect, but for anybody to think that to stand in Vietnam was the wrong thing to do, I don't agree with that."

Today, Payne works in the Rensselaer County District Attorney's Office as the coordinator for the County Reentry Task Force (CRTC).

He also maintains the rank of major in 10th Brigade of the New York Guard and was inducted into the New York State Senate Veterans' Hall of Fame.

Payne, a past commander at the Saugerties American Legion Post 72, is also very active locally, and he works steadfastly to keep the post's museum accessible to students and historians.

It has more than 400 artifacts that date back from the French and Indian wars to the present.

"Almost everything there is from a person with a connection to Saugerties," he said.

Payne shares the curator role with Alan Greczynski.

Together, they keep the museum current as items continue to be donated by veterans returning home from Iraq and Afghanistan.

Payne and Greczynski also have interviewed 60 veterans in an effort to preserve their stories for the Library of Congress.

The museum opened in the 1980s with a few items donated by the families of World War I veterans.

Over the years, it has grown to occupy two rooms and a hallway in the upstairs of the Lamouree-Hackett post.

The museum will be open to the public on Sunday following the ceremony at the post at 11 a.m. After that, it is open for tours by appointment only.

Payne said he hopes those who visit will be struck by the sacrifices made by the men and women who served their nation in every conflict, even Vietnam.

As the years have passed, Payne has noted how views toward Vietnam veterans have changed, especially among the young men and women returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

"I was traveling for my work out to San Diego, and I met a young man who had a hat identifying himself as a veteran," he said.

"I thanked him for his service, and he said, 'Thank you for your service. If it wasn't for people like you, I couldn't wear a hat like this.'"